James M. Elam
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James Mason Elam (1796–1856) was a veteran of the War of 1812 and fought the Barbary Pirates. He was an unsuccessful Whig candidate for the United States House of Representatives in Louisiana in 1843.
Elam was born in Nottoway County, Virginia on January 30, 1796, the son of Essex Elam and Lavinia Crowder. He enlisted in the army and served during the War of 1812, but saw no combat. He later served as Ensign aboard the U.S.S. Guerriere under the command of Captain Stephen Decatur, he was part of the crew that went on in 1815 to attack the Barbary Pirates off the coast of Algeria.
